you welcome to newsday. reporting live from singapore, i'm arunoday mukharji. the headlines... politicians in washington hear the harrowing testimony of an 11—year—old girl who survived the uvalde shooting by covering herself in the blood of a friend — but will it spur them into action on gun control? the moment of impact — ukraine's second city of kharkeev comes under renewed bombardment from russian artillary. kharkiv. as grain exports from ukraine collapse, the united nations says the war could unleash

an unprecedented wave of hunger and destitution. and the image that's gone round the world — of a 16—year—girl old in her prom dress in front of her bombed—out school. live from our studio in singapore. this is bbc news. it's newsday. welcome to the programme. it's 6am in singapore, ”pm in london, and 6pm in washington — where lawmakers have been hearing searing testimony from the victims and families of those caught up several recent mass shootings. among them was an 11—year—old girl, mia cerrillo. a student at the robb elementary school in texas, she described how she smeared herself in blood and played dead to avoid

being killed along with 19 other children and two teachers. the shooting, carried out by an 18—year—old gunman, has provoked a nation—wide debate about the sale of firearms. our north america editor sarah smith has more from washington — this is the last photograph of lexi rubio, getting a school prize just hours before she was shot dead, the last time her parents saw her. we don't want you to think of lexi as just a number. she was intelligent, compassionate and athletic. she was quiet, shy, unless she had a point to make. when she knew was right, as she so often was, she stood her ground. kimberly rubio is demanding lawmakers take action on gun control to ban assault weapons like the one used in uvalde, texas. so today, we stand for lexi, and as her voice we demand action. we seek a ban on assault rifles and high—capacity magazines.

we understand that, for some reason, to some people — to people with money, to people who fund political campaigns — that guns are more important than children. so at this moment we ask for progress. miah cerrillo was in the classroom when the gunman burst in. in this video recorded for the committee, she told them what happened. as the shooting continued, she smeared herself in the blood of a classmate to pretend she was dead. dr roy guerrero described the horror of seeing the first young casualties arrive at the hospital. but what i did find was something no

prayer will ever relieve. two children whose bodies had been pulverised by bullets fired at them, decapitated, whose flesh had been ripped apart, that the only clue of their identities was their blood splattered cartoon clothes still clinging to them. clinging for life and finding none. the tragedy in uvalde has provoked a nationwide conversation about gun control. there are cross—party talks going on about new laws, but any legislation they can agree on will fall far short of what is being demanded. there will not be a ban on assault weapons. they can't even agree on raising the legal minimum age to buy one from 18 to 21. president biden is powerless to do anything about gun control without the support of at least some republicans. so, despite an epidemic of mass shootings across america, nearly 250 already this year, any significant reform remains highly unlikely. sarah smith, bbc news, washington.

i'm joined now by dr shannon frattaroli — she's a professor at thejohns hopkins centre for gun violence solutions. thank you very much for your time here on newsday, talking about a very difficult subject. distressing testimonies coming in from all the survivors, it really paints a vivid picture on this demo for the violence that went on at uvalde. it certainly does, and it's heart wrenching to listen to that testimony. and it's even more difficult to accept the fact that this is the reality of life in the united states today. but it doesn't have to be. . united states today. but it doesn't have to be-— united states today. but it doesn't have to be. ., ., ., have to be. right, and how important is it for these — have to be. right, and how important is it for these families _ have to be. right, and how important is it for these families to _ have to be. right, and how important is it for these families to see - is it for these families to see their testimonies not go unheard, and actually end up ushering some sort of tighter gun control laws? will certainly nothing can bring back the children, the teachers who were killed that day, countless

people who are killed in gun violence around this country every day. by having some sort of response from elected officials i imagine would be helpful, and give them some assurance that this is not the pattern we will continue to live with. if pattern we will continue to live with. . ~ ., ., with. if we talk about some of the secific with. if we talk about some of the specific proposals _ with. if we talk about some of the specific proposals now _ with. if we talk about some of the specific proposals now - - with. if we talk about some of the specific proposals now - you - with. if we talk about some of the l specific proposals now - you know, specific proposals now — you know, one of them are the red flag laws. how do you reckon these are likely to work? . ~ how do you reckon these are likely to work? ., ~ , ., ., how do you reckon these are likely to work? ., ~ i. ., , how do you reckon these are likely to work? ., ~ ., , ., to work? thank you for focusing on these laws- — to work? thank you for focusing on these laws. so extreme _ to work? thank you for focusing on these laws. so extreme risk - these laws. so extreme risk preferred prevention orders allow for people who are witnessing loved ones or people in their community in crisis to go before the court and say, "you know what, this person is behaving dangerously, they are doing things them at high risk for committing gun violence either towards others or towards themselves, and it'sjust not towards others or towards themselves, and it's just not a towards others or towards themselves, and it'sjust not a good idea right now for them to have

ready access to firearms. so let's put a pause on that, let's temporarily prohibit people from purchasing and possessing guns when they are in the midst of a crisis and expressing ideas about violence." and expressing ideas about violence-"— and expressing ideas about violence. " and expressing ideas about violence.“ , . ., ., :: violence." only a handful of the 50 reublican violence." only a handful of the 50 republican senators _ violence.�* only a handful of the 50 republican senators appear- violence." only a handful of the 50 republican senators appear to - violence." only a handful of the 50 republican senators appear to be i republican senators appear to be open to some sort of new gun legislation — do you find any scope for common ground? for common ground ? because ultimately, for common ground? because ultimately, that's what it will all boil down to.— boil down to. you're absolutely riaht, boil down to. you're absolutely right. and _ boil down to. you're absolutely right. and i'm _ boil down to. you're absolutely right, and i'm glad _ boil down to. you're absolutely right, and i'm glad that - boil down to. you're absolutely right, and i'm glad that you'rel right, and i'm glad that you're focusing on these protection laws, because that's where we see time and time again at the state level that there is agreement across party lines. we've also done polling over several years now and see consistently that when we talk about extreme response to red flag laws, there is a majority of people who in this country support those

proposals. and when we look at the different variations and demographics, be they men, women, democrats, republicans, gun owners — it doesn't matter, regardless of what the demographic profile, we consistently see high levels of support for these laws. so that gives me great hope and i think it's something republicans and democrats alike in congress should be paying attention to. alike in congress should be paying attention te— alike in congress should be paying attention to-_ alike in congress should be paying attention to. ., ., ~ ,, , attention to. doctor, thank you very much for your— attention to. doctor, thank you very much for your time _ attention to. doctor, thank you very much for your time here _ attention to. doctor, thank you very much for your time here on - attention to. doctor, thank you very | much for your time here on newsday and for sharing your views on the issue. ukraine's second city of kharkiv has come under renewed attack, with a number of russian missile strikes over the past 2a hours. although russia's main focus remains the donbas region further south, kharkiv is just 20 miles from the border — and the strikes have raised concerns that it could again become a target for intensive russian artillery fire. wyre davies has this report from the city. after a relatively benign few weeks,

kharkiv has again become the focus of russian attacks. a late—night missile strike on this shopping centre in the eastern suburbs caused considerable damage but no casualties. elsewhere in the city, a man was reportedly killed and several others injured in another bombing. munitions explode right at the start of this war, as russian troops invaded, there was intense fighting around kharkiv, a key russian objective. ukraine's second largest city, an important industrial complex and just 20 miles from the russian border. but ukrainian troops prevailed... man shouts ..forcing the russians back, but not far. and that's the problem. from just across the border, kharkiv and its 1.4 million residents are still well within range of russian artillery and missiles.

translation: we are worried - because people started coming back to the city with their children and families, yet it's all starting again, really bad things, the bombardments are even more intense. much of the focus of recent russian attacks has been down in the donbas region, but recent intelligence reports do suggest that the russians might be regrouping and refocusing, attacking again places like kharkiv further to the north. it's a monumental effort defending the donbas cities of severodonetsk and lysychansk, where civilians struggle to survive under relentless russian fire. if russia was to amplify the northern and eastern fronts, it would undoubtedly stretch limited ukrainian resources. president zelensky has appealed for more military help.

longer range rocket launchers have been promised by the uk and others. but time is of the essence. munitions explode wyre davies, bbc news, kharkiv. the united nations is warning that the war in ukraine is threatening to "unleash an unprecedented wave of hunger and destitution". the comment from secretary—general antonio guterres comes as russia's foreign minister, sergei lavrov, has denied the conflict is causing a globalfood crisis — despite soaring prices driven by the collapse of ukrainian exports. our global trade correspondent dharshini david has more. ukraine's crops can usually feed 400 million mouths, but russia stands accused of turning that breadbasket into a stealth missile. 90% of grain typically leaves by ship, but most are stuck in fields or silos as blockades at ports slow exports to a trickle. my friend, how are you?

the russian foreign minister was in turkey to discuss how grain corridors, a safe passage for ships, could be created, but was making no commitments nor accepting any responsibility. translation: to solve this problem, the only thing needed _ is for the ukrainians to let vessels out of their ports, either by clearing mines or by marking out safe corridors. nothing more is required. ukraine is one of the world's largest exporters of cereal crops and oils. before the war, 12% of global wheat exports came from ukraine, almost half of sunflower oil, and it provided around 18% of maize exports. but with most of these being transported by sea, the amount being exported has slumped. and that means some countries, chiefly in africa and the middle east, will be hit hard. egypt has been receiving a quarter of its wheat from ukraine, libya almost half, and lebanon more than 60%.

and taking a chunk out of the world's supply means prices have soared since the invasion, affecting every corner of the globe. can a deal to get exports moving be struck? the world trade organization is one of those trying to solve this crisis. having 20—25 million tonnes of grain sitting both in ukrainian ports and in granaries' warehouses, it's really sad when we see prices rising so high. at the moment there is no progress. what if there is no agreement? what are your concerns? if we are not able to evacuate the grains in ukraine now and then they have a harvest coming up injuly, with a similar quantity that will go to waste, then you can see that this will work its way through for the next year or two and that that will be really, really disastrous. the clock is ticking. 49 million people are already on the brink of famine. a more prolonged humanitarian

crisis could be looming. dharshini david, bbc news. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: america's most decorated gymnast, simone biles, is among dozens of women suing the fbi for failing to stop the convicted sex abuser, larry nassar. the day the british liberated the falklands. and by tonight, british troops have begun the task of disarming the enemy. in the heart of the west german capital, this was gorbymania at its height. the crowd packed to see the man who, for them, has raised great hopes for an end to the division of europe.

it happened as the queen moved toward horse guards parade for the start of tropping the colour. the queen looks worried, but recovers quickly. as long as they'll pay i to go see me, i'll go out there and take them down the hills. what does it feel like to be the first man to go across the channel by your own power? it feels pretty neat. it feels marvellous, really. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm arunoday mukharji in singapore. our headlines... politicians in washington hear the harrowing testimony of an 11—year—old girl who survived the uvalde shooting by covering herself in the blood of a friend. america's most decorated gymnast, simone biles, is among dozens of women who've filed a lawsuit against the fbi for failing to stop the convicted sex

abuser larry nassar, despite knowing of complaints against him. they�*re seeking $1 billion in collective damages. nassar was jailed for life in 2018 for sexually assaulting athletes in his role as a sports doctor at usa gymnastics and michigan state university. lawyers say the bureau heard allegations of his misconduct in 2015, but declined to interview victims who were willing to talk about it — allowing nassar to continue the abuse. for more on this, i'm joined by marisa kwiatkowski, an investigative reporter at usa today — she helped expose the scandal in 2016. thanks very much for your time here on newsday. you were an investigative reporter at the indianapolis star when it first published that investigation, which eventually went on to indict larry nassar. when did you first realise the scale of the abuse going on? we

knew the scale of the abuse going on? - knew pretty early that this was not an isolated situation. prior to publishing our first article about larry nassar, we already had three survivors come forward and share very similar stories of abuse that he had perpetuated against them. and after we published our first article in 2016, we heard from many others who shared similar stories with us. by who shared similar stories with us. by the end of it, there were more than 500 people who had come forward with allegations against him. you know, the survivors have said that they feel betrayed by every institution that was supposed to stand by them, i mean, they spoken out against the us olympic committee, usa gymnastics, the fbi, even the department ofjustice. after being filled by so many institutions, how hopeful are they of being able to fix accountability in this case?—

in this case? obviously i don't seak in this case? obviously i don't speak for— in this case? obviously i don't speak for the _ in this case? obviously i don't speak for the survivors, - in this case? obviously i don't speak for the survivors, but . in this case? obviously i don't i speak for the survivors, but what in this case? obviously i don't - speak for the survivors, but what i can tell you is that they are incredibly frustrated by the lack of action that they've seen taken in terms of holding people accountable for what happened with larry nassar. after the fbi had received allegations and not properly handled them relating to larry nassar, there were many more women and girls who suffered abuse. and they have shared multiple times in testimony and in interviews their frustration that nobody�*s been criminally charged as it relates to the fbi's failures, and nobody it seems has been truly held accountable for that. according to investigations _ held accountable for that. according to investigations so _ held accountable for that. according to investigations so far, _ held accountable for that. according to investigations so far, in _ held accountable for that. according to investigations so far, in your - to investigations so far, in your reports, why did the fbi failed to act in time? i reports, why did the fbi failed to act in time?— act in time? i don't think we understand _ act in time? i don't think we understand still— act in time? i don't think we understand still fully - act in time? i don't think we understand still fully the - act in time? i don't think we | understand still fully the full scope of what happened back then — but we know from not only our own reporting that we did, but also information confirmed in the inspector general�*s report published

last year that they did not properly handle the allegations, that they did not properly hand them off to a differentjurisdiction or take them seriously in terms of doing proper interviews, and that when they were asked about it by investigators, they made false statements and lied about what happened in an effort to minimise what happened.— about what happened in an effort to minimise what happened. what's been the fbi'sjustification, _ minimise what happened. what's been the fbi'sjustification, if— minimise what happened. what's been the fbi'sjustification, if any? - the fbi'sjustification, if any? there has not been a lot of conversation about the fbi's perspective, although they did testify that it was a failure of the fbi during congressional hearings on this matter. a, , fbi during congressional hearings on this matter. ., ~ fbi during congressional hearings on this matter. ., , this matter. marissa, thank you very much for your— this matter. marissa, thank you very much for your time _ this matter. marissa, thank you very much for your time here _ this matter. marissa, thank you very much for your time here on - this matter. marissa, thank you veryl much for your time here on newsday. think you. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines... donald trump and two of his adult children, donaldjr and ivanka, are due to testify in a new york

state probe into the former us president's business practices starting on 15july. the court last month refused trump's appeal to overturn a ruling enforcing subpoenas for the former president. the case centres on claims that trump misstated the values of his assets in financial statements. a man has been charged with attempted murder, after allegedly making threats against the us supreme court judge brett kavanaugh. 26—year—old nicholas roske reportedly told police he was angry about a leaked draught opinion, which indicates the court could be set to overturn federal abortion rights. he was also upset about an imminent ruling on gun control. dozens of human rights groups are putting pressure on the un human rights chief to resign immediately, arguing that she whitewashed the situation in china during her visit there last month. they say michelle bachelet had squandered a rare chance to push for accountability over what they allege is beijing's

systematic human rights violations against muslim uyghurs and others in the xinjiang region. sir david attenborough has been officially appointed a night grant cross of the order of saint michael and saint george. he was given the honour by the prince of wales at windsor castle. the services to the broadcasting and conservation. sir david, 96, was called a visionary environmentalist by the duke of cambridge. let's return to ukraine, and an image that has gone around the world. it's of 16—year—old valaray in her prom dress, outside her bombed—out school in khakev. the students in her class were determined to go ahead with their graduation — despite the war, despite everything they've been living through. valaray talked to my colleague matthew amroliwala.

translation: i wanted the whole world to pay attention _ to our country and to my hometown, and what's going on. and now, the buildings where civilians live are destroyed. so many 16—year—olds around the world will be getting ready for their graduation, trying to figure out what to wear. i'll show to our viewers video of you and your friend dancing. ijust wondered, was part of i just wondered, was part of the reason to do these pictures to try to hang onto fragments of life during this war? it was the idea of my classmates, and the ukrainian military helped us to do this. as for the photograph of me, i wanted to show the contrast between my school and me. it describes the situation in our country.

i know the message was to show support for the military — how many of your fathers, your brothers, amongst all the students are actually fighting the russians? and what has that been like for the rest of the families? many of my friends and relatives now help ukraine in any way they can. some of them are at the war, and they provide humanitarian aid. russian forces bombed the city again last night. how frightening, how dangerous have the last few days been? it dangerous have the last few days been? ., , , dangerous have the last few days been? . , , ., dangerous have the last few days been? ., , ., .,, been? it was very loud last night, it's very scary _ been? it was very loud last night, it's very scary in _ been? it was very loud last night, it's very scary in kharkiv - been? it was very loud last night, it's very scary in kharkiv from - been? it was very loud last night, it's very scary in kharkiv from the | it's very scary in kharkiv from the first day, and very dangerous and scary every day. and some scary sounds are all the time, and sometimes they are closer to me, and

sometimes they are closer to me, and sometimes they are farther away. find sometimes they are farther away. and how are people surviving? are they moving, are they living underground? just describe what it's been like over these last few weeks. halli just describe what it's been like over these last few weeks. half of m class over these last few weeks. half of my class has _ over these last few weeks. half of my class has moved _ over these last few weeks. half of my class has moved abroad. - my class has moved abroad. some civilians were living underground, but now a normal life is starting to return. now these people are in safer places. returning to that picture of you in that dress in front of your old school — it's a snapshot of ukrainian resistance, it's a picture also its gone around the world. has that surprise you, are you proud of that? i was surprised it received so much attention, but i'm proud that my country is very strong, and the ukrainian forces, as well. because they have been fighting against the enemy since 21 february.

as for me, it was unexpected because i have never thought my photo would be seen by the whole world. it was not about me, it was more about bringing attention to the situation in my hometown, and my country. i wanted to add, we are proud of our heroes and armed forces of ukraine. we believe we will win because kindness will always win over evil. especially, i'm grateful to the military unit kraken, who defended my school. speaking to the 16—year—old who's really become a symbol of ukrainian resistance. that's all for now —

stay with bbc news. hello again. the weather is looking a bit mixed over the next few days — that's because it's all coming in from the west. and if we look in the atlantic, this low and cloud is actually an ex—tropical storm. that gave a lot of rain in florida over the weekend — we're not going to see quite so much rain. most of the rain today has been on that weather front and those heavy thundery showers that have been following on. some very dramatic weather watcher pictures — a great example here in kent, we had some localised flooding in the far south of england with those storms, and some slow—moving thundery downpours bringing some very wet roads, as well, in parts of southern scotland. further north in scotland, the rain will be petering out and those thundery showers are fading away through this evening. the rain at the same time that we've got in northern ireland becomes very light and patchy as it moves over the irish sea into northern england. so, it's becoming much drier by the end of the night,

clearer skies in the south, and temperatures holding at 10—12 celsius. now, at the moment, we're in the peak of the grass pollen season, and i think on thursday, we'll have very high pollen levels more widely across england. and we'll start with some sunshine across wales, the midlands, and southern england in the morning. more cloud further north could actually lead to 1—2 showers pushing their way eastwards for a while, otherwise we'll see some sunshine. out to the west, that weather front on the tail end of that ex—tropical storm brings this light and patchy rain, some wetter weather perhaps in south wales and the southwest where it'll be very gray and murky. but it should be a warmer day than we had today in scotland, with some sunshine for a while. there's that ex—tropical storm, it's called alex — unusual to have one so close to the uk at this time of the year, it's normally at the end of the hurricane season. but it is getting steered to the northwest of us, so we're likely to find some stronger winds picking up in scotland and northern ireland, increasingly seeing these showers developing and turning quite heavy for england and wales.

maybe a damp start in the southeast, but improving here, and much of england and wales will be dry with some sunshine. it's quite warm air, so even 18 celsius in glasgow with that wet weather, but eastern england peaking at 23 celsius in the sunshine. heading into the weekend, and that area of low pressure continues to run to the north of scotland, higher pressure to the south of the uk. so, for northern areas, it'll be quite windy, we'll find some wet weather in scotland and northern ireland, i think mainly on saturday. for england and wales, it should be much drier, brighter, and warmer with some sunshine.

this is bbc news. here are the headlines: lawmakers in washington have heard from an 11—year—old survivor of the texas school shooting, miah cerrillo, who pretended to be dead after her teacher was shot. they are being urged to adopt new gun control measures. as fighting rages in the donbas region, moscow is coming under renewed international pressure to end its blockade of ukrainian ports. russia's foreign minister has denied that the war in ukraine is causing a global food crisis. a teacher has been killed and 1a of her pupils injured, after a car hit a crowd of people in central berlin. police have detained the driver. it's not clear whether he acted deliberately. security in public places has been tightened in india amid warnings of islamist militant attacks —

after controversial remarks about the prophet muhammad by officials from the governing bjp.